UT & VT: "for great justice!"

Vermont v. Brillon news, from Provo's answer to Pravda:

Speedy Trial Law may Bring Greater Justice

Anxious to fulfill its duty to protect the people of Utah, the Attorney General's Office is asking the Supreme Court to fix a speedy trial rule that could allow criminals to avoid prosecution...

The error with the Vermont ruling, according to Assistant Attorney General Ryan Tenney, was that it could allow public defenders to delay trials and block the judicial process. “[This ruling would make the government] lose its ability to prosecute a criminal, based on the ‘unwillingness’ of a public defender to move the case forward,” Tenney said...

I hope that the BYU NewsNet Zoobie who cut and pasted this news release lands that internship with the AG's office, I really do.

Guantánamo prosecutor quits over Brady violations

From the Washington Post:

Guantanamo Prosecutor Quits, Says Evidence Was Withheld

A military prosecutor involved in war crimes cases here has quit his position, citing ethical concerns about his office's failure to turn over exculpatory material to attorneys for an Afghan detainee... Lt. Col. Darrel Vandeveld... (laid) out his concerns about the case and procedures in the military prosecutor's office...

"My ethical qualms about continuing to serve as a prosecutor relate primarily to the procedures for affording defense counsel discovery," wrote Vandeveld in his filing. "I am highly concerned, to the point that I believe I can no longer serve as a prosecutor at the Commissions, about the slipshod, uncertain 'procedure' for affording defense counsel discovery..."

"Why would I lie?"

Think it's just you who's feeling under-trusted? Check out the latest post by Woman of the Law:

on being a public defender: apparently we're all liars.

It's strange how much judges and prosecutors really believe that we lie, lie, lie all the time...

It's not just in trial or motion practice. You can get this attitude, even when you're doing a change of plea, when your judge is all, "I am the only one here looking out for you, dear defendant, because we just can't trust this (incompetent / overworked / unprepared) court-appointed lawyer telling me that you've been advised of your rights..."

"You play the organ like a madwoman"

Llama the prosecutor sends a little love our way:

I'll give a shout out to the public defenders -- the PD from my courtroom today had seven people in custody, plus at least twenty-some clients to represent. Imagine having to give competent legal advice to all of those people...

"So, could this be my way out?"

Well, what do you think, should former prosecutor Chuck try to become a public defender, or as he puts it:

should i join the dark side?

IL: the world turned upside down

From the Chicago Reader blogs:

Rule of Law

I hope I wasn't the only one who was floored to read the following quote in this morning's Sun-Times: "This world is upside down when public defenders who represent criminals make more than the men and women in this office."

It's attributed to first assistant state's attorney Robert Milan, Cook County's second-ranking prosecutor. I assume this is just careless venting... (I)t's not like the public defender's office is some feel-good charity set up to soothe the consciences of champagne liberals...

WA: Thurston County prosecutor’s office - a source of ridicule and contempt?

The Olympian editorial board is sort of underwhelmed by our prosecutors' recent accomplishments:

Prosecutor’s office is losing credibility

What is going on in the county prosecutor’s office? How can a professional organization such as the prosecutor’s office maintain public confidence in the judicial system when the prosecutors themselves are caught up in one scandal after another?

The latest incident involves Deputy Prosecutor David Soukup, 46, who was recently... charged with drunken driving... The fact that he was prosecuting a DUI case in Thurston County within hours of his own arrest has raised significant ethical questions... Soukup’s arrest is simply the latest in a series of embarrassments for Prosecutor Ed Holm and his staff.

Last month, Thurston County District Court Judge Susan Dubuisson dismissed second-degree criminal trespassing charges against 16 (anti-war) protesters... Judge Dubuisson said deputy prosecutors were guilty of “gross negligence” in their failure to turn over police reports to defendants and their attorneys in a timely fashion...

In October, then-prosecutor William Halstead was arrested at Qwest Field after he allegedly was found in a women’s restroom during a Seahawks game... Halstead resigned last December.

That was one month after a Mason County Superior Court jury found that Holm and his staff discriminated against three former deputy prosecuting attorneys because they were women (resulting in a) $1.52 million jury award...

Where’s the accountability for these serious lapses of judgment? The county prosecutor’s office should be above reproach not the source of contempt and ridicule from law-abiding citizens and criminals alike. The public is left to wonder whether Prosecutor Ed Holm is capable of leading a moral and professional office.

WA: A dog party! A big dog party!

From KING 5: 'Pet' project of late King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng celebrated

It was a "pet project" of the late King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng that brought service dogs into the courthouse. Prosecutor's offices in King and Snohomish Counties were the first in the country to use dogs to help victims of crime..."Do you like my briefcase?" "I do! I do like your briefcase!"

Preconceived notions

Former prosecutor's intern carries prejudices into the jury pool, former prosecutor's intern doesn't make it onto the jury. Any questions?

This snotty comment -

defense attorney HAD to be a public defender, he wasn't all that smart or picky about the jurors.. nor was he well put-together

- is almost offset by this choice of avatar: Bonus link goes to the image source: SLC Punk.

WA: no more bribes for bargains

From the Tri-Cities Herald:

Prosecutors: New WA law prevents troubling out-of-court deals

Local prosecutors are praising a new law that bans out-of-court deals for criminal defendants like ones that got a city prosecutor and contract defense attorney in trouble last year. Gov. Chris Gregoire signed the legislation that bars payments by criminal defendants to charitable causes in hopes of having charges reduced or their cases dismissed. The law takes effect July 22. "This is a very good thing," Franklin County Prosecutor Steve Lowe said...

See also Governor puts stop to dollars for deals

The Herald's reports about Kennewick's missing donations from defendants -- which were intended for the city's Home Base youth program -- resulted in federal criminal charges being filed against former city attorney Tyler Morris and former contract public defender Jeffrey Finney...

CLE's are better with animals

Best two hours of continuing legal ed ever: "Service Dogs: Our New Partners in Criminal Prosecution."
Now bear with me. Dogs as we know are natural libertarians. I obtained hands-on proof that some staff members of the King County Prosecuting Attorneys Office, like Jeeter and Ellie here, will roll over to get their bellies rubbed by just about anyone, including the odd public defender.

While the dogs primarily are tasked to work with child witnesses, when they're in the courtroom they're available to anyone who could use some canine attention. They don't do suggestibility. Of course there are objections, but I'd sooner have one dog by the witness stand than any victim / witness human. In one trial supposedly, defense counsel scratched one of the dogs behind the ears throughout his cross (which sounds both pleasurable and a good way to neutralize any pro-prosecution "aww" factor). If the accused wanted the dog up on the stand, too, that's allowable they say. These dogs will give you a tail wag and a big brown-eyed gaze no matter which side you're on.

And what great dogs! These weren't nippers, sniffers, scratchers or biters, all of which will wash you out of doggy boot camp, along with begging and an inordinate interest in cats. The dogs I played with were creampuffs, a mix of Labs and Goldens (I was expecting at least one GSD). They have been trained by volunteers (cuteness overload warning: contains many pictures of puppies) for Canine Companions for Independence. I learned their various job categories: service dogs, skilled companions, facility dogs, and (one they don't list on the website) "change of career dogs" for retirees and flunkees. If the puppy you raise can't cut it, you may get to keep it (for an extra $500 fee).

The last part of the seminar was given over to a dog and human play date. Seldom have I had a better time in a CLE, and never before have I left a CLE with my slacks covered in fur.

WA: "affordable housing is an anti-crime program"

An uncommon prosecutorial point of view from the Seattle city attorney, in the Seattle Times:

Fight crime, addiction with housing

I thought about Herman James all day. I prosecuted him back in September of last year in the Seattle Municipal Community Court... My records and the court's records say that I was there; yet, I cannot remember his face among the many street alcoholics I have seen over the past two years.

A few weeks ago, I received a DVD of a Seattle Channel program about the community court... (L)ate one night, I popped it into the DVD drive on my laptop. That's when I met Herman James.

He spoke eloquently about his life as an alcoholic and about the help he had received. He was living at 1811 Eastlake, a controversial program that provides housing for long-term alcoholics without requiring abstinence or sobriety. Although he was permitted to drink in his apartment, he, like many of the residents there, had chosen to be sober...

James died Jan. 15...

Being in court and meeting the defendants who commit what we refer to as quality-of-life crimes is a transforming experience. It's so easy to demonize those whom you do not know. They seem so much more human when one hears their stories. They are criminals, but they are also people first and when treated as such can thrive.

I do not recall Herman James as the street alcoholic whom I prosecuted. I will remember him, however, as a good soul who died with dignity among people who cared, because he got help through the Seattle Municipal Community Court and 1811 Eastlake. He died sober, without the crutch of alcohol, with a roof over his head...

ID: prosecutor's pervy e-mails and pecadillos lead to departure

From the Spokesman-Review:

Kootenai deputy prosecutor resigns

Rick Baughman, the embattled chief deputy prosecutor for Kootenai County, resigned effective today, Prosecutor Bill Douglas told The Spokesman-Review late this afternoon. The news comes after completion of an independent investigation into sexual harassment allegations against Baughman...

Two former female colleagues accused Baughman of inappropriate touching, lewd comments and offers of dates. The investigation was expanded to include county e-mail use following the revelation that Baughman and one of the women, former victims advocate Laura Bonneville, exchanged lewd e-mails...

KXLY has video.

"Why couldn't I have been a defense attorney?"

From Law & Order: Magistrate Court, why might a young prosecutor feel the need to vent?

Because my job is the same every day. Snide or condescending defense lawyers that think I'm a lowly misdemeanor prosecutor and not that smart. Public Defenders that whine about their clients' sad stories. Magistrate "judges" with no legal education on power trips. Smelly criminals. Crazy victims...

It's telling that this blogger's mission statement says:

I never intended to get into criminal law, but that was the first job I got...

It's an uncomfortable responsibility.

Automatic DQ

Interesting discussion amongst the law students on the topic:

How hard is it to get a summer job/internship for public defender?

including this relevation from Moonchigger:

The head of the Colorado PD's office actually told us at an informational meeting that they view working for the DA as a huge black mark. While he didn't say it would be an automatic disqualification, he did state that there was no PD he knew that could even consider being a prosecutor.

Well, he didn't know me then. So relieved to know that my years prosecuting child support cases aren't an automatic disqualification. Oh, the shame of representing The People, particularly on the days when I'd have to fill in on the criminal docket. On those days, I'd say things like, "Your Honor, the State of Washington wants... uh, whatever Your Honor wants," and then stare down at my shoes. Somehow, I could just feel the disembodied head of a PD's office somewhere glaring down at me - how my face would burn.

Hope I've redeemed myself in the nine years since then, though the black mark is still visible. It's nice to know:

(T)hat's not how the PD Office in GA works.

Not in Idaho either. Lucky for me, not in some parts of Washington. There's also the honorable example of Ken Lammers, lawyer for the people whichever side of the courtroom.

So, "how could you?" How could I even consider being a prosecutor? The question sure takes me back. Was it the glass ceiling between misdemeanors and felonies, with none of the senior felony guys (and they were all guys) going anywhere before retirement? Was it the cheery welcome on breaking through the ceiling, being told by one of the old guys, "none of you are qualified to handle these"? Could it have been the day I watched an older colleague argue for the release on his own recognizance of a con who'd previously raped someone close to me?

We all have our reasons, and our paths out of the job, and our paths back. None of them are disqualifying. As pointed out by commenter John Galt (how's that for a name for a freedom-fighting p.d.?):

An office as important as the PD should probably just focus on hiring the best attorney available.

And if you were feeling charitable, and maybe if you had more than one opening to fill, you could do as my current boss did, and take a chance on a one-time prosecutor like me.

WA: winning, all-too-human Oly prosecutor resigns under fire

From the Olympian:

Attorney resigns under cloud

Thurston County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney William Halstead, who was arrested Oct. 22 when he was found in a women's restroom at Qwest Field during a Seahawks game, will resign effective the end of the year...

Halstead has worked in the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney's Office for about 10 years, with one break when he worked elsewhere...

On Monday, Halstead won two first-degree murder convictions for a case he prosecuted in Thurston County Superior Court. The case involveed murder charges against two men, James Faircloth and Paul V. Johns...

In a phone interview last week, (elected prosecutor Ed) Holm said he was waiting to discipline Halstead for his Oct. 22 arrest until the conclusion of the murder trial...

Courthouse scuttlebutt has it that Ed Holm did wait - for a whole five minutes after the verdicts.

One commenter on the Olympian website says, "The wrong person resigned," while another says, "Good luck in the private sector, Will. This could be a blessing in disguise. You'll be much better off financially and less likely to be subjected to this type of humiliation."

ID: prosecutor - nasty e-mails? bad judgment? no problem!

From Saturday's Spokesman-Review:

Prosecutor won't fire for e-mails

Kootenai County Prosecutor Bill Douglas will not fire any employees for a slew of sexually explicit e-mails several of them exchanged on county-owned computers over the past year... "They are against county policy and those people who sent them are subject to discipline," Douglas said. "Those who forwarded these used bad judgment, but no one was fired for it..."

Says Huckleberries Online: "You and Baughman would be so fired if you pulled your e-mail stunts at the SR."

From Thursday, same paper:

Harassment investigator steps down

The original investigator hired by Kootenai County to look into sexual harassment allegations against the county's chief deputy prosecutor has stepped down because of a perceived conflict of interest...

More on both topics from the Coeur d' Alene Press here.

WA: prosecutors vs. prosecutors trial ends

From the Olympian:

Sex bias lawsuit in jury's hands

A Mason County jury starts deliberations Monday to decide whether three female ex-Thurston County prosecutors were the victims of sexual harassment on the job or whether they magnified workplace dysfunction into sex bias allegations in order to make a stronger case for damages...

Holm testifies in bias case

Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney Ed Holm said he had to clamp down on his once-favored "queen bee" and "shining star" when the top female deputy refused to lend her staff to cover a workload crisis in District Court...

From the comments:

"The more I read, the more it sounds like it was a workplace fully of bullies. And, it was bullying from both sides of the lawsuit..."

WA: civilized workplaces and others

From the Olympian, continuing coverage of the lawsuit alleging a hostile work environment in the Thurston County prosecutors office:

Attorney defends yelling at workers

Thurston County Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jack Jones said Tuesday he regretted yelling at several female co-workers, but he said the need for precision in dealing with felony criminal cases "sometimes brings out high emotions..."

"Would you say that if you're soft-spoken, that you're probably not going to be a successful criminal prosecutor?" (attorney Pat) Buchanan asked. "Yes," Jones said. "You have to be able to make a point, and not be shy about it..."

Bonus link goes to The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't by Robert I. Sutton (reviewed here).

Update 11/16/06: Men: Women made sex jokes

WA: prosecutor in-house hostility

One of the many benefits of Googling is that if a person were contemplating applying for work with, say, the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney, that person could read this - from the Olympian:

Hotbed of hostile language alleged

Before she quit the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, Vonda Sargent's ex-boss threatened to send her "back to District Court with the rest of the girls," she testified Friday. But attorneys for Thurston County said Sargent also had some choice words, calling a county judge a "short-legged hyena," and identifying a fellow prosecutor as an "equal-opportunity d--k..."

"There was no future there for me," Sargent, 42, of Tacoma, said in explaining why she left her post as a deputy prosecuting attorney in October 2001 to become a civil litigator with State Farm Insurance Co. in Seattle. "I took the job to get me out of that environment..."

To go to work for an insurance company... shiver on that for a minute.